In honor of Valentine’s Day, I wanted to share some of my favorite “I Love You” scenes. I picked four out of millions and list them below, in no particular order. Happy Valentine’s Day!

1. Scarlett and Rhett in Gone With the Wind

I’ve loved Gone with the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell, since I read it decades ago and went through my Scarlett phase (mentioned here). Scarlett reminds me of a Civil War era Madonna, and the book is overloaded with all kinds of drama between the War, the South, and Scarlett and her rebellious, self-centered, tough as nails personality.

And Rhett is a “scoundrel” for sure, but he admires Scarlett for her real self, not the airs she must put on in Civil War South. Unfortunately, Scarlett realizes a little too late that she belongs with Rhett, and by then Rhett has had it with her. Towards the end of the novel, they have the following conversation:

“Then- then you mean I’ve ruined it all- that you don’t love me any more?”

“That’s right.”

“But,” she said stubbornly, like a child who still feels that to state a desire is to gain that desire, “but I love you!”

“That’s your misfortune.”

“That’s your misfortune!” Ha ha. I love it. Rhett always tells it like it is. One of the coolest things about Scarlett though is that even though her world has fallen apart around her, she stubbornly decides she’ll think about everything “tomorrow” and you know she’ll be alright. She won’t settle for anything less. She’s a survivor. But I digress….

2. Noah and Allie in The Notebook

Allie has to decide whether to go back to Lon, her super-nice fiancee, or stay with Noah, her first love and love of her life. Noah and Allie find their way back to each other and after spending the night together wake up in bed. This is what Nicholas Sparks writes:

Once, when he was looking at her in the moments before daybreak, her eyes fluttered open and she smiled and reached up to touch his face. He put his fingers to her lips, gently, to keep her from speaking, and for a long time they just looked at one another.

When the lump in his throat subsided, he whispered to her, “You are the answer to every prayer I’ve offered. You are a song, a dream, a whisper, and I don’t know how I could have lived without you for as long as I have. I love you, Allie, more than you can ever imagine. I always have, and I always will.”

Like she can go back to Lon after that! Puh-lease. Sap Rules! I’d probably crack up laughing if my husband said those words to me, but I love reading them and hypocritically would love my husband to say them to me, even though I would laugh in his face. Make sense? Maybe not. Just being honest.

Now to make the whole scene even prettier, picture Ryan Gosling saying those words. If you start the book, you’ll finish it in a day, and probably be crying at the end. If you prefer movies, tonight is the perfect night to order it and have a snuggle-fest on the couch.

3. Andy and April, Parks and Rec

If you aren’t a Parks and Rec fan, you really should be. Trust me. It’s on Netflix. Go. Now.

Andy Dwyer (Chris Pratt) is one of my favorite characters on television. He’s innocently sweet and charming and simple. For example, he writes a song for his girlfriend April about his favorite month, called “November,” and compiles a bucket list that includes making the best grilled cheese sandwich EVER and “outrunning a hippo.”

After he and April (Aubrey Plaza) develop “romantical” feelings for each other, April eventually tells Andy she loves him in the Harvest Festival Episode (Season 3, Episode 7). Here’s the dialogue:

April: Hey, I love you.

Andy: Dude, shut up, that is awesome sauce!

“Awesome sauce” should be a term used in everyday life by EVERYONE. Let’s mainstream it, people!

Later, after April gets mad at Andy for his response, this happens:

Andy: I do love you.

April: You do?

Andy: Yea.. that’s what, you know, makes the sauce so awesome.

Yes, Andy, that IS what makes the sauce so awesome.

If you can find twenty-four minutes to watch the Harvest Festival episode on Netflix, you’ll fall in love with Parks and Rec, and you’ll get a good taste of fictional Pawnee, Indiana, and get to experience one of its best characters, Lil’ Sebastian, as well as Joan Callamezzo, the local television news celebrity who “runs the town.” Watch tonight for a Valentine’s Day laugh!

4. George and Siena in Seinfeld

George decides he wants to tell his girlfriend Siena (whose name causes the others to joke that George is dating a crayon) that he loves her. Jerry asks him if he’s confident in the “‘I love you’ return,” and he says, “Fifty-fifty.” This is what happens. It’s from the Face Painter episode, which is great for other reasons too, not relevant here:

[George and Siena are sitting in the car again. They’re listening to the hockey game on the radio.]

RADIO ANNOUNCER: Devils goal! Stephan Richer scores from just inside the blue line! And the Devils take– (George turns down the volume)

GEORGE: You know, I could have actually gone to that.

SIENA: So why didn’t you?

GEORGE: Well, I didn’t want to break our date.

SIENA: Oh, well.

GEORGE: Because I… I love you.

SIENA: You know, I’m hungry. Let’s get something to eat.

Not was George was looking for. George gets upset, declaring he will never say “I love you” first again. He and Jerry call it a “huge matzoh ball” hanging between George and Siena. Later, George says it again to Siena:

Bahaha! I haven’t seen #4 in such a long time! I think that’s the episode where Jerry explains to George that if he says “I love you” and she didn’t reciprocate, uh, I think he says, “If she doesn’t say it back…that’s a pretty big Matzo ball.” Classic–absolutely classic!

Not that I am not familiar with the other love scenes or do not have an appreciation for why you chose them but to include George and “crayon girl” just tickled me – well received Jess, well received. The brilliance of Seinfeld…I own all nine seasons and I still laugh each time I re-watch them.

Andy from Parks and Rec is by far my most favorite character on television! The fact that he is one of yours as well is…well…awesome sauce! I’ve been using that term for a while now; ever since I heard it on Parks and Rec. In written form I tend to use it as one word though: awesomesauce.🙂

I knew there had to be more Andy fans out there! He’s the best! I like awesomesauce as one word too- thanks for sharing. By the way, did you catch Chris Pratt in Zero Dark Thirty? He’s all in shape now. Also, I was going to write “BTW,” instead of “by the way” right there, but I remembered your dislike of text-like abbreviations! See we pay attention out here in Blogtropolis🙂 Thanks for reading and commenting.

I was worried too. When I saw him all serious I got scared, but as soon as he opened his mouth, and his Andy voice came out, I was okay with it. CP deserves to be a star. We may have to let Andy go and be a big boy–share him with the world. 😦

I concur. The world needs to know him! I’d love to see him on the big screen more. Especially if he gets type cast for his Andy character. I have a confession – I watched Ellen one day when he was on her show. He said he thinks he got the ‘Zero Dark Thirty’ role because the person who cast him had never seen Parks and Rec.🙂

Maybe it’s just me being my Pride-and-Prejudice-fanatic self, but I personally looove when Mr. Darcy confesses to Elizabeth in the 2005 movie: “I will have to tell you: you have bewitched me, body and soul, and I love, I love, I love you.” Score, sir.

hehe absolutely. p&p is actually the only one of hers i’ve read, so maybe you’ll be surprised :p (ps right there with you on Rhett & Scarlett – though I couldn’t believe after 1000 pages he REALLY ends up not givin’ a damn!)